Darn it. I just checked my son's account, and it is still not working. I'm glad your son was able to get his scores and that he is happy with them. Brenda

Ellen, I hope you manage to get through to the CB via phone. I just tried and got a busy signal. I did check my son's account again, and his SAT scores are showing again, at least, but the AP section still shows 'No scores available'. I guess patience is in order.... Brenda

Ellen, Oh nooooooo! I definitely feel for you. I checked in my son's account again this morning for AP scores and it still says, "No scores available". I didn't even think to see if son's SAT scores were still there, and now his account says, "You have not taken the SAT". Talk about concerning. I sure hope the College Board gets all this figured out ASAP. Maybe there is some solace in knowing that your kiddo is not the only one having this problem. Brenda

Beautiful story -- and I suspect that you deserve a lot of credit, too, for sticking with your son and guiding him along the way. You must be a very special mom. Brenda

A few more ideas -- She might want to check out the free Wednesday night concert series at the Hatch Shell. Also, if she likes history, the Freedom Trail tours with costumed interpreters are pretty good. The Science Museum and its huge Van De Graff generator is not to be missed. Also, the Science Museum currently has a special exhibit on the Dead Sea Scrolls that looks interesting, and the New England Aquarium has recently re-opened after a huge refurbishment. It's pretty easy to get around Boston on public transportation. HTH, Brenda

He took the tests at a private school. He only knows one other kid who was at one of the two tests. He's going to see if he has her email address. I am hoping that there was some confusion because his homeschool CEEB didn't match the CEEB of the testing school, and that the scores are there and are just not matched up with his account. I guess we'll just have to be patient and wait and see. Thanks for all the good thoughts & prayers. Brenda

Updating to say that I did call and they say they have no tests listed for my son, they would create a case to investigate the issue and get back to me in 5 - 7 business days. Ugh. Not sure what we'll do if they can't find the scores, so praying that they do! Brenda

My son's accout says "No scores available" -- ugh. Sent email to college board to follow up. May call later as well. Others on College Confidential are reporting the same problem. So frustrating! Brenda

My son did Apologia's first Chem book only and then studied with me for 3 weeks, and still made a low score on the SAT2 Chem (around 30% percentile). During the study period before the SAT2, it became apparent to me that Apologia Chem was missing quite a few topics (a thorough treatment of pH being the only one I can remember now) that were on the SAT2. Also, a lot of kids take the SAT2 Chem after having had AP Chem, so they have a whole different level of preparation, yet these are the kids that your son will be competing with. My son ended up taking CC Chem his senior year and did well, so doing that would be another way of validating your son's schooling rather than taking the SAT2. Brenda

I wasn't referring to superscoring when I suggested that one might want to be cautious about taking the ACT/SAT. I was really talking about the SAT2 subject tests. Personally, I think the student's record would "look" better with strong SAT or ACT scores and no subject tests than with subject tests where the scores were low. (This is of course if the student is applying to colleges that don't require SAT2 scores). Also -- I personally don't believe in taking the ACT/SAT many times starting as a sophomore. I've had my students take the PSAT in 10th, and then again in 11th. I've also had them try an ACT practice test from the red book to see if that would be a better test for them. For my oldest, the ACT ended up being better, so I had him put a lot of time into studying for it. He did well and did not take the ACT again and also never took the SAT. For my younger guy, the SAT turned out to be a better test, so we spent a ton of time last summer (after 10th) studying for it. He took the 11th grade PSAT and the actual SAT both in October. We were pleased with his SAT scores and he will not take it again. I wanted him to devote his attention this past spring to the AP exams he was preparing for instead of trying to eek out a few extra points on the SAT. I think that no matter when your student takes the ACT or SAT, the best way to high scores is to spend a lot of time on actual practice questions. Older son did every test in the ACT red book, and younger son did every test in the SAT blue book plus a few extras I found online. It took a lot of time to prepare, but the results speak for themselves. I've found that to get the best results, you really need to schedule time for the test prep and make it a priority and not try to fit it in around all the other things your kiddo is doing. The best bang for the buck comes from really analyzing the questions that are missed and trying to "see" testing patterns and become familiar with the test approach. Brenda

So we just got the bill for son's one 4-credit CC course for the fall -- the price works out to $194/credit. I just cannot believe this, as when my oldest was at the same CC five years ago, his courses worked out to $123/credit. This makes an increase of 58% in five years. I know that this is much more affordable than many other colleges, but a 58% increase in five years? I also found out this morning that they will be charging for parking passes starting this year (which used to be free). Anyone else's CC have this much of a price increase in so short a time? Brenda

Kelly, I think your idea of having her do the ACT instead is a good one, if her scores on practice tests look promising. With the ACT, she will also have to tackle the science section, so how she does there may also be a consideration in which test to choose. Another thing to consider is that unless she plans on applying to very selective schools, the SAT2 tests generally aren't required, so you could have her skip those in favor of another try at the SAT. You might use the SAT2 tests as outside validation of her coursework, and they would strengthen her applications in that way if she does well. I'd suggest only having her take them if her scores on practice tests look very good. If she's not applying to tippy top schools and she has other outside validation, I'd skip the SAT2s. I tend to hold the philosophy that I would rather submit fewer test results and have them be very good than to submit a bunch of results that are just OK. It all depends, too, on her goal. Is she just looking to get into a college, or is getting a scholarship important too. Sometimes building the strongest support package can be a bit tricky -- and I definitely think it looks different for every student, depending upon his/her strengths and weaknesses. Regardless of which testing approach you take, I would have her spend the summer finishing the missing math and working some SAT and/or ACT math problems every day. Lots of practice with actual test questions is what helped my dc improve their scores. HTH, Brenda

Omma, Don't be so sure of that. I had one that used Saxon for 4 or 5 years, and it wasn't til he was in Advanced Math that I realized that he didn't understand what he was doing. He has a great memory and was able to get As on the tests by memorizing procedures. His experience was exactly as Nan described. So I concur with her that Saxon can be a good program for some, but it's definitely important to have your dc try problems from other programs occassionally to make sure they really are understanding what they are doing and can apply it. Brenda

When mine got a job that enabled him to pay for his own keep (rent, food, car insurace, cell phone, etc.). He started his first "real" full-time adult job this month, and the whole thing seems so surreal. He is still keeping in touch, but he's clearly moving towards independence. Surprisingly, I felt worse when he first left for college. I guess that was because it was a more dramatic change for me -- having him here all the time to being away for months at a time. Nevertheless, we are very proud ot the boy! :hurray: Brenda

Kolbe is offering some on-line courses for the first time this year, and they have Geometry. (www.kolbe.org) Brenda

I've used both with my kids and far, far prefer the Dolciani texts. Saxon drove my math-bright son crazy with the endless practice, so he only used it for one year. The varied levels of problems in Dolciani allowed me to tailor the courses to my son's needs. IMHO, Doliciani does a much better job helping the student to gain a conceptual understanding of math. Brenda

This is what I was going to suggest. Accounting would be good for a detail-oriented student, and it would be easy to do part-time. She could work during tax season, for example, and take the rest of the year off. I would let her use the love of young children aspect in raising her own kids. She'd get plenty of practice there. Elementary teacher would be something that would be difficult to do part-time. Also -- if she has any interest, I think nursing would be another career that would allow flexible hours and part-time work. It is also in demand everywhere. Best wishes, Brenda

Here is the preliminary breakdown of scores AP Latin scores, 2013. 5: 14.2%. 4: 21.1%. 3: 31.6%. 2: 22.8%. 1: 10.3%. These may shift slightly as late exams are scored. More details are found in the tweets on the AP Central page: http://apcentral.collegeboard.com/apc/Controller.jpf We are anxiously awaiting scores here. Brenda

Claire, Where did you find this information? My son took the new AP Latin exam, and I'm wondering if there are any stats out for that. Brenda

The only draw back I can see to applying Early Action is if your child has some key grades and/or test scores that won't be available until later in to the fall. If the student applies EA, the school is forced to make a decision based on the info they have at the time. In my older son's case, he got into one school EA, but didn't get any merit aid. I think it was due to the fact that his fall CC grades really would have strengthened his application, and they weren't available on the EA timeframe. For most kids, I don't think there is a drawback to an EA application. HTH, Brenda

:iagree: I hope you're taking time to celebrate your (and your kiddo's) accomplishment! Well done, good & faithful friend! Brenda

:iagree: We had exactly the same experience with Apologia Chem and the SAT Subject test. Even after finishing Apologia Chem and spending 3 intense weeks studying extra material for the subject test, my son did poorly. I was very disappointed and won't use Apologia science after that. Brenda

I agree. We loved Chalkdust, hated Saxon. Completely different approach. If Chalkdust is working, I'd stick with that. Brenda

I agree with Regentrude & Margaret. The PSAT is a good way to practice the actual testing environment, and the scores don't get reported to colleges. It's also a pretty good reflection of how your student is likely to do on the SAT. I agree that doing at least a practice of both the ACT & SAT is a good idea so you can see if one of these is a better fit for your child than the other. Also, the PSAT (in 11th grade) qualifies the student for National Merit consideration. I'd suggest having your child take the PSAT in 10th grade with a little prep to familiarize him/herself with the test. If the scores are at/near National Merit recognition levels, then have the student put a lot of effort into studing/prep before that 11th grade PSAT. If the scores aren't close to qualifying in 10th grade, then you could have the student skip the 11th grade PSAT or take it as another round of practice. HTH, Brenda

We've really enjoyed these: Understanding the World's Greatest Structures -- Ressler This course was some physics, mostly civil engineering, with some history thrown in. He uses a lot of great models and photos, so it's not available on audio only. If you look at the reviews, this course has 5 stars and 152 of 152 reviewers would recommend it. It was just superb. Great Debate: Advocates & Opponents of the American Constitution -- Pangle Tocqueville & the American Experiment -- Cook We used both of these as the basis for our 1/2 credit American Govt course. They were also fantastic -- a much deeper look at the Constitution and our government than any standard high school text woud give. They explain the "whys" of the Constitution and how these manifest themselves in American institutions. World's Greatest Paintings -- Kloss We used this set as part of a high school art credit. This one is also very highly rated. We also enjoyed the Vandiver audio lectures on The Aeneid. HTH, Brenda